{"id":44769,"date":"2025-01-31T22:52:04","date_gmt":"2025-01-31T14:52:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/rocket-report-spacex-tosses-away-a-falcon-9-a-somalian-spaceport\/"},"modified":"2025-01-31T22:52:04","modified_gmt":"2025-01-31T14:52:04","slug":"rocket-report-spacex-tosses-away-a-falcon-9-a-somalian-spaceport","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/rocket-report-spacex-tosses-away-a-falcon-9-a-somalian-spaceport\/","title":{"rendered":"Rocket Report: SpaceX tosses away a Falcon 9; a Somalian spaceport?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome to Edition 7.29 of the Rocket Report! It may be difficult to believe, but we are already one full month into the new year. It will be hard to top this month in launch, however, given the historic debut of New Glenn, and fiery end of the seventh Starship flight test. And in truth, February does look a bit sleepier in terms of launch.<\/p>\n

As always, we welcome reader submissions, and if you don\u2019t want to miss an issue, please subscribe using the box below (the form will not appear on AMP-enabled versions of the site). Each report will include information on small-, medium-, and heavy-lift rockets as well as a quick look ahead at the next three launches on the calendar.<\/p>\n

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UK government injects $25 million into Orbex<\/strong>. As some European launch companies have struggled to raise funding, the United Kingdom government stepped up to make a significant investment in the Scotland-based launch firm Orbex, The Financial Times reports. As part of the company\u2019s latest fundraising round, valued at $50 million (GBP 40 million), the UK government will become a shareholder in Orbex. The company is working to develop both a small- and medium-lift rocket. Phil Chambers, Orbex\u2019s chief executive, said the UK support would be \u201ca strong signal to other private investors, and to the European Space Agency and the EU, that we\u2019re serious about being a part of the future of European launch.\u201d<\/p>\n

What\u2019s the plan, fellas<\/em>? \u2026 If we\u2019re being frank, which is how we roll in the Rocket Report, some of Orbex\u2019s recent activity does not inspire confidence. The company, for example, suspended plans to develop a spaceport at Sutherland in the Scottish Highlands to focus resources on developing the Prime microlauncher. And then it said it would develop the larger Proxima rocket as well. That seems pretty ambitious for what is, in the grand scheme of things, a relatively modest round of fundraising. Given that we have not seen a whole lot of hardware from Orbex, some skepticism is warranted. (submitted by EllPeaTea)<\/p>\n

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Turkey may develop a spaceport in Somalia<\/strong>. Turkey has begun advancing plans to construct a rocket launch facility in Somalia, Space in Africa reports. Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said the project began in December. Mohamud emphasized the project\u2019s potential benefits, highlighting its capacity to generate significant employment opportunities and revenue for the East Africa nation. \u201cI believe that the importance of Somalia hosting a launchpad for Turkish satellites goes beyond the billions of dollars and opportunities the project will generate,\u201d Mohamud said.<\/p>\n

Nothing has been finalized yet<\/em> \u2026 Located along the equator, Somalia fronts the Indian Ocean, offering an ideal launch location. The potential Somali launch site is part of Turkey\u2019s broader aspirations to assert itself in the global space race, traditionally dominated by major powers. In 2021, Turkey unveiled a 10-year space road map that includes plans for missions to the moon, establishing a spaceport, and developing advanced satellite systems. Somalia, a key Turkish security partner since 2011, already hosts Turkey\u2019s largest overseas training base.<\/p>\n

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Firefly expands Alpha launch plans to Wallops and Sweden<\/strong>. Firefly Aerospace expects to start launching its Alpha rocket from launch sites in Virginia and Sweden as soon as 2026 to help the company avoid growing congestion at launch sites in Florida and California, Space News reports. So far, Alpha has only launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Firefly is planning five Alpha launches in 2025, all from Vandenberg. The company has performed five Alpha launches to date, going back to the failed inaugural launch in 2021.<\/p>\n

Sweden, you say<\/em>? \u2026 So what is up with those plans to launch from Sweden? Adam Oakes, vice president of launch vehicles at Firefly, said the Esrange Space Centre in Sweden was an ideal partner. \u201cEsrange has basically done everything for the science community in space except an orbital rocket,\u201d he said, citing the more than 600 sounding rocket launches there as well as experience with ground stations. \u201cIt was the perfect partnership and the biggest softball of all the opportunities out there.\u201d It still feels a bit odd, as Vandenberg already offers polar launch corridors, as well as Alpha-size commercial European launch vehicles coming along soon. (submitted by EllPeaTea)<\/p>\n

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MaiaSpace targets 2026 for debut launch<\/strong>. A subsidiary of ArianeGroup that is developing a two-stage partially reusable rocket, MaiaSpace is one of the more interesting European launch startups. The company\u2019s chief executive, Yohann Leroy, recently spoke with Europe in Space to discuss the company\u2019s plans. The company will likely start off with a suborbital test flight of a launcher capable of boosting 500 kg to low-Earth orbit in reusable mode and 1,500 kg in expendable mode during the middle of next year.<\/p>\n

Following an iterative design method<\/em> \u2026 \u201cOur approach is to test our rocket in flight as early as possible, following our test-and-learn iterative approach,\u201d Leroy said. \u201cWe are convinced we will go faster this way, rather than spending time in the lab making sure the first flight reaches 100 percent of our performance targets. In short, we are ready to trade lift-off performance for time-saving, knowing that we will quickly recover our performance afterward. What\u2019s important is to stick to our objective of starting commercial operations in the second half of 2026, and we\u2019re on track to reach this goal.\u201d (submitted by RB)<\/p>\n

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Arianespace inking deals for its new rocket<\/strong>. Arianespace currently has a backlog of 30 Ariane 6 launches, 18 of which are for Amazon\u2019s Kuiper constellation. However, it has recently begun to add Europe-based launch contracts for the rocket. During signing events at the 17th European Space Conference in late January, Arianespace secured contracts for three Ariane 6 flights, European Spaceflight reports.<\/p>\n

Getting into operations<\/em> \u2026 The missions are the European Space Agency\u2019s PLAnetary Transits and Oscillations of stars (PLATO) mission, the Sentinel-1D Earth observation satellite that will replace Sentinel-1A, and a pair of second-generation Galileo satellites. After completing a largely successful debut flight last year, the first operational flight of Ariane is scheduled for February 26, carrying the CSO-3 reconnaissance satellite for the French Armed Forces. (submitted by EllPeaTea)<\/p>\n

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SpaceX expends a Falcon 9 rocket<\/strong>. On Wednesday, SpaceX launched the SpainSat NG-1 satellite from Kennedy Space Center\u2019s Pad 39A. The Falcon 9 first-stage booster used on this launch saw its 21st and final flight, Florida Today reports. SpaceX said the reason it was not trying to recover the booster was due to the extra power needed to reach the satellite\u2019s intended orbit.<\/p>\n

Into the drink<\/em> \u2026 The well-traveled booster had launched a variety of missions during its lifetime: 13 Starlink missions, SES-22, ispace\u2019s HAKUTO-R MISSION 1, Amazonas-6, CRS-27, Bandwagon-1, GSAT-20, and Thuraya-4. The Airbus-built satellite, known as SpainSat NG-1 (New Generation), is the first of two satellites for Hisdesat. It was developed under a partnership with the European Space Agency, making its launch on a Falcon 9 somewhat notable.<\/p>\n

India marks first launch of 2025<\/strong>. India conducted its first launch of the year late Tuesday, sending a new-generation navigation satellite toward geostationary orbit, Space News reports. A Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mk II lifted off from Satish Dhawan Space Centre. Aboard was the NVS-02 satellite, sent into geosynchronous transfer orbit. The satellite is the second of five new-generation spacecraft for the Navigation with Indian Constellation.<\/p>\n

A busy year planned<\/em> \u2026 The mission was the first of 10 orbital launches planned by India in 2025, which would mark a domestic launch record. Major missions include a joint Earth science mission between NASA and ISRO, named NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar, expected to launch around March on a GSLV rocket, and an uncrewed test flight for the Gaganyaan human spaceflight program on a human-rated LVM-3 launcher. The first launch of the Vikram-1 for private company Skyroot Aerospace could also take place this year. (submitted by EllPeaTea)<\/p>\n

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New Glenn represents a milestone moment for Blue Origin<\/strong>. In a feature, Ars Technica explores what the successful launch of the New Glenn rocket means for Blue Origin. The near-term step is clear: getting better at building engines and rockets and flying New Glenn regularly. In an interview, Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos sounded a lot like SpaceX founder Elon Musk, who has spoken about \u201cbuilding the machine that builds the machine\u201d over the last decade with respect to both Tesla vehicles and SpaceX rockets. Asked about Blue\u2019s current priorities, Bezos responded, \u201cRate manufacturing and driving urgency around the machine that makes the machine.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The tortoise and the hare<\/em> \u2026 There are those who wonder why Blue Origin, which has a \u201ctortoise\u201d as its unofficial mascot, has moved so slowly when compared to SpaceX\u2019s progress over the last quarter of a century. Bezos responded that the space age is just beginning. \u201cIt\u2019s still absolutely day one,\u201d he said. \u201cThere are going to be multiple winners. SpaceX is going to be successful. Blue Origin is going to be successful. And there are other companies who haven\u2019t even been founded yet that are going to grow into fantastic, giant space companies. So the vision that I think people should have is that this is the absolute beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n

Space Force has big dreams for ULA this year<\/strong>. The US Space Force is projecting 11 national security launches aboard United Launch Alliance\u2019s Vulcan rocket in 2025, Space News reports. This ambitious schedule comes as the National Security Space Launch program continues to wait on Vulcan\u2019s readiness. The heavy lift rocket, which debuted last year after prolonged schedule setbacks, is a cornerstone of the national security\u2019s Phase 2 program, under which ULA was selected in 2020 as the primary launch provider for national security missions through 2027.<\/p>\n

That seems like a lot<\/em> \u2026 However, Vulcan remains under review, with certification expected in late February following its second demonstration flight in October 2024. There is a lot of pressure on ULA to execute with Vulcan, due not only to the need to fly out Phase 2 launches, but because the military is nearing a decision on how to award launch contracts under Phase 3 of the program. The more complex \u201cLane 2\u201d missions are likely to be divided up between ULA and SpaceX. Reaching 11 national security launches on Vulcan this year seems like a stretch for ULA. The company probably will only launch two rockets during the first half of this year, one of which probably will be an Atlas V booster. (submitted by EllPeaTea)<\/p>\n

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April 2026 a \u201cno later than\u201d date for Artemis II<\/strong>. In a Space News article citing current contractors defending NASA\u2019s Artemis plan to return humans to the Moon, a space agency official said the current timeline for Artemis II is achievable. April 2026 is actually a no-later-than date for the mission, Matt Ramsay, Artemis 2 mission manager at NASA, said during a panel discussion. \u201cThe agency has challenged us to do better, and we\u2019re in the process of figuring out what better looks like,\u201d he said, with a \u201cwork-to\u201d launch date coming in the next few weeks.<\/p>\n

NET or NLT<\/em>? \u2026 This is interesting, because a good source told Ars about a month ago that the present date for the Artemis II mission to fly astronauts around the Moon has almost no schedule margin. However, Ramsay said the key factor driving the launch date will be work assembling the vehicle. Crews are currently stacking segments of the SLS\u2019s twin solid rocket boosters, a process that should be complete in the next two to three weeks. This all assumes the Artemis II mission goes forward as designed. I guess we\u2019ll see what happens.<\/p>\n

Next three launches<\/h2>\n

Jan. 31<\/strong>: Falcon 9 | Starlink 11-4 | Vandenberg Space Force Base, California | 23:11 UTC<\/p>\n

Feb. 2<\/strong>: H3 | Demo Flight | Michibiki 6 | Tanegashima Space Center, Japan | 8:30 UTC<\/p>\n

Feb. 3<\/strong>: Falcon 9 | Starlink 12-3 | Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida | 8:54 UTC<\/p>\n

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